


Tempers

by ThisAz1an



Category: Cyberpunk 2077 (Video Game)
Genre: All kinds of shiz, Angst, At least in my perspective, F/F, Felt like a dirty sailor just typing them out, Grief/Mourning, If you haven't played the game and gotten deep enough into the Judy bandwagon, Major Spoilers, Some Fluff, Spoilers, Suicide described, Turn back, You've been warned, like huge, lots of curse words, post suicide
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-04
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-14 08:02:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,964
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28542243
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThisAz1an/pseuds/ThisAz1an
Summary: "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned."My little take on the Side Job Mission(s) involving 'Both Sides, Now' in Cyberpunk 2077.
Relationships: Johnny Silverhand & V, Judy Alvarez/Female V
Comments: 5
Kudos: 137





	Tempers

**Author's Note:**

> Please, please; be warned, there is suicide mentioned AND post suicide described in this story. If this is a topic too deep and raw to be read upon, please, turn back. This is my first and hopefully only time I'd ever breach into this zone.  
> Otherwise, enjoy the read. As always, thank you for reading.

_Shit_ , V thought as she ducked her head under the cold spray of her shower. She felt like utter shit itself; her stomach going through five stages of it and her head was pounding with a fierce hangover.

Oh, and the aftertaste?

A combination of everything— _anything_ —shitty.

Last time she’d willingly believe the sincerity of a psycho terrorist rocker take-over when he wants to “talk” to an old flame. Especially when all she could do was helplessly watch and scream at the cyber void of her mind as Johnny went out on a damned all-night bender. He did all the walking, drinking, smoking, and talking, and yet; here she was, barely even human in her own body.

“Fuckin’ moron,” V mumbled to no one, but herself.

She stood underneath the spray of the showerhead for several more minutes before shutting it off. Toweling herself off, she dumped yesterday’s clothes into the laundry chute. She could only hope the laundromat could take care of the smell. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted the blue pill container of the omega blockers on the sink’s countertop. Without a second thought, she picked up the container, popped open the lid with a flick of her thumb, and pulled out one pill that she tossed straight into her mouth. She swallowed it down and followed by a few gulps of water from her sink’s faucet. That oughta shut up the smug jerk in her brain for a while. She needed her own head space for the day, at least.

Exiting out of her bathroom, she went for her closet and dressed herself in some dark pants, a matching buttoned up shirt, and her usual boots. Today would be a casual day of biz, if any of her fixers got some easy jobs for today. She really wasn’t in the mood for any heavy lifting today.

_And I owe Rogue for having to deal with mine and Johnny’s shit._

A soft groan escaped her lips as she rubbed a hand down her face. Rogue was another person and subject all together that she would have to tackle eventually. One way or another, Johnny’s past grievances were going to clash whenever Arasaka was concerned and she’d rather they didn’t bury her with it. V grabbed one of her aviators from its stand within her closet and put it on. No doubt her optics were going to be a touch sensitive for any sunlight.

She was in the midst of strapping on her gun holsters when she felt her cell buzzing within the confines of pocket. Then, the holo link popped up in her optics to show her who was calling.

_Judy Alvarez._

It had been a couple of weeks since they last saw one another. The last happened to be after their search and rescue effort on Evelyn, having found her in a scav’s XBD joint. The Evelyn Parker they had saved was nothing more than a broken shell of who she once was: A confident and sure woman who thought she knew all the strings of Night City. They had exchanged nothing but holo messages since then. Well, V mostly popped in to check in, inquired if they needed anything. Judy responded with reassurances and updates, though Evelyn just “slept” for most of them.

V answered before the call ended and Judy’s vid-holo popped up before her.

“Hey, Judy…” she said, gently. She noted the barely contained distress beneath Judy’s cool, stoic mask. “What’s up?”

 _“V,”_ Judy’s voice was hoarse. Another sign. _“Can you come over, stat?”_

On the back of her unoccupied mind, V knew something happened and that it involved Evelyn. However, she wanted to be sure.

“Something happen?”

_“Yeah. Just come.”_

Just like that, Judy ended the call, leaving V to ponder the worst of outcomes on her own.

Cursing softly, she quickly buckled up her holsters, grabbed her revolvers from her armory and darted out of her apartment within seconds. The world lurched but she withheld the need to barf up whatever was left in her stomach and gunned it. She summoned up the ‘call vehicle’ functions, its holo menu popping up. She chose the Kusanagi she’d bought from Wakako and instructed the vehicle’s GPS system to stop by roundabout road before the megabuilding complex.

The elevator ride down felt slower than usual as it descended down to the streets. By the time it reached ground floor level, V barely waited for the automatic doors to fully slide open as she forced it open quicker by pushing the doors aside herself. She hurriedly blurted out any apologies to any unfortunate civilian she bumped to in her rush to her motorcycle. V hopped off the last, few steps of the staircase just as the Kusanagi was pulling up. The motorcycle had barely halted to a full stop before she jumped onto it. The engine revved up as soon as her hands gripped onto the handlebars, roaring to full life.

V made a beeline for it toward the Watson District, ignoring the speed limits and narrowly dodging the other cars. She had gotten several angry honks for her trouble, but she didn’t bother with it. Her main focus was just getting to Judy’s apartment, stat.

She’d later chalk it up to the sudden adrenaline rush for her miraculous arrival to Judy’s place without so much an accident and a squadron of Night City’s finest trailing after her. She skidded to a halt before the small apartment building. The tires of her motorcycle screeching in burning rubber and the sound of it spooked a couple of civvies hanging about nearby. Getting up from her vehicle as she pulled off her shades and pocketed them, V went straight for the fire escape stairs that would lead her straight to Judy’s floor within seconds. Rounded the corner and darted towards the sole door on one end of the hallway. She practically slapped her hand on the _‘Call’_ holo button of the intercom.

The door whooshed open and she stepped inside.

“Ju—"

_“In the bathroom!”_

The smell hit her like a train wreck. Blood. Lots of it. It hung in the air, thick in its scent. V felt her own run cold as her mind registered Judy’s cry. The door to the bathroom was closed but it didn’t take a genius to know someone had… V darted for the bathroom, the door whooshing open and the one scenario she had imagined came to fruition. 

Evelyn. Dead on the bathtub, her head laying limp on the edge. Splatters of blood on every inch of the white porcelain. Judy seated on the other end; her hands balled into fists as she had them pressed against her eyes. Trying to contain her tears or the futile attempt of it when, in the end, the tears will always spill for a loved one lost.

“I was—I was only gone an hour…” Judy’s voice quivered as she stammered to explain what led to the fate Evelyn left herself in.

V entered the bathroom and knelled in front of Judy, her eyes never leaving Evelyn.

A whole entire hour, by herself, with the now bloodied knife left in her hand, and a tub where she’d—well, there was no need to try and piece together the scene. It was clear as day and Judy was in pieces because of it.

“…lying in bed, like always, when I went out. Thought I’d buy her some of her favorite snacks,” Judy began to explain, her voice thick with a range of emotions. V listened as she turned her gaze toward her crestfallen friend.

“And I got back to…if I’d just known, I’d ‘ave—” Judy pulled her balled fists away from her eyes, revealing its tear-stricken state. “V, she’s… _gone._ ”

Within the depths of her heart, something tugged. Coming from a rich kid life, then to her brief stint as a Corpo saboteur, and now, her jumpstarted life as a merc; V only ever knew the notion to suppress her emotions. They’d only just get in the way of biz. There were rare, few company she kept that truly got to see her out of her masked exterior. Jackie had been one of the first. Then, a couple more followed after.

“Hey, don’t blame yourself,” V said, softly, as placed a hand on Judy’s knee, and gave it a comforting squeeze.

“I should’ve _sensed_ something—”

“Judy, you couldn’t have watched her twenty-four seven. Evelyn, she…” V trailed off.

Honestly, she didn’t know much about Evelyn’s personal life, who she was beyond the contract that got her a killer bio chip. She’d seen pieces, moments of vulnerability that exchanged between Evelyn and Judy. They cared for one another, to ensure that neither one would end up being offed in Night City and its many “opportunities.” Judy knew the works, said it herself. Trying to do “shortcuts” in Night City was just one step away from getting a bullet to one’s chrome skull.

V inhaled in a breath for a moment, before exhaling it back out as she combed a hand through her short platinum, blonde locks. Gotta do something. What’s done was done. She inquired on Judy’s opinion on what she’d like to do for Evelyn. Judy settled on calling the badges to have the incident reported. Evelyn wasn’t on any of Trauma Team’s coverage, after all.

“Know someone in the badges,” V said. “Helped them out with a dilemma way back when. They owed me one.”

Judy didn’t answer right away, and she was fine with that. Today was going to be heavy.

“Sure, call em’ up,” was the whispered soft response.

One holo later and a brief explanation to the five o’ on the situation at hand. They were promised a couple of their own guys swing by soon as possible, take the body, and get the report squared right away. ETA in thirty. In those thirty minutes, V had carried Evelyn back to the bedroom and let Judy take care of the rest. She wanted—needed—to do something, even if it was painful to bear. She didn’t want her one and only true friend dragged out of her apartment like a corpse. Judy eventually emerged from the room with some bloodied towels and clothes. She dumped them all in a plastic bag and cleaned her tear streaked face by the kitchen sink.

The badges arrived at the sound of familiar sirens of the NCPD. The officers didn’t need to question them about anything, having probably been debriefed by the cop friend on the matter. All they needed to do was take holo-pictures and official statements for the reports. Judy offered up the bloodied rags and clothes, for evidence. Once the nitty gritty was done and over with, the officers took Evelyn in a body bag with the assurance that Judy will get a call sometime later today, so she could prep for a funeral. V saw the officers off while Judy remained seated on the couch, where the officers had interviewed her. They were courteous and professional, which was missing in most of the badges in the city. People offing themselves in Night City was just as common as a store stick up.

V approached the silent BD techy, kneeling before her a second time, and gauged the other woman.

Judy was just sitting there, her eyes devoid of any emotion, with one hand curled over the other like a prayer. It seemed like she hadn’t quite registered that V was kneeling in front of her either, lost in her thoughts. Probably trying to process the what ifs, couldas, and should’ves.

Funerals were a rare occurrence for V personally. Her family and their friends were quite well off, so no one really feared death unless they dealt the wrong hand in the Corpo biz. She grew up privileged to have hired guards take her to and from school, chauffeur and watch over her whenever she went out with a couple of her schoolmates. She never once feared death growing up, knowing no one was going to gun her down, not when her family was well-protected.

It had been quite the transition, going from a well to do Corpo saboteur agent to a merc just living her life down to the barrel of a gun.

Maybe this would have never happened. Maybe it _still_ would’ve happened, and the whole situation would’ve blown up into bigger pieces. Maybe Jackie and Evelyn would still be here. Dexter DeShawn could rot in a ditch for all she cared. The guy was conniving from the get-go. V knew the bastard was gonna be a backstabber at one point, coming from a hiatus and then heading straight for the major leagues as if the red carpet was rolled out for him? The cards were all there, but someone down the line withheld a couple of them. Then again, who would’ve thunk that Yorinobu Arasaka would steal a prototype engram that held the digitized soul of one Johnny Silverhand.

Either way, they were in this mess, and it was just one casualty after the other. Two of the most important people in one or the other’s lives, gone just like that.

“Hey,” V said gently, not wanting to surprise Judy. She mulled on her words a little. “Wanna get some fresh air?”

Judy _looked_ at her then and V couldn’t make heads or tails what was going through her head. Judy knew how to guard herself well. V had only seen a glimpse of who Judy truly was beneath that stoic, tough face and it was only when Evelyn’s safety was stake.

“Yeah,” Judy answered, hoarse and soft.

V stood up and stepped aside to let Judy lead wherever she wanted to go. The BD techy led her to the same fire escape she had made a mad dash through. It was a short walk to the rooftop, where there were a couple of chairs set up and good view of Night City’s towering skyscrapers. Judy didn’t take a seat right away but walked some distance from the chairs. She stood before the city and crossed her arms, as if in defiance to the very place and life that took away her closest friend. V didn’t say anything, knowing she simply needed her space.

Judy stood there for almost an hour if she counted her minutes right. V had remained seated the entire time, slumped back against it with her head leaning against the top edge. Her head was reeling now that the adrenaline had worn off and she almost felt like puking. The day had barely begun and there was already death lingering about her. The thought brought her back to the very first time she met Judy and what she had seen about V. How she saw “walking, talking corpses” just by looking at her. She hadn’t been wrong; V had shot up her fair share of people as she had started her merc life. It was part of the biz, but she still tried to avoid a confrontation, if she could. But if a fixer calls for a hit, well, a rookie merc couldn’t be wishy washy about the jobs that landed on their laps, especially if they were trying to get back up on their feet.

Judy wouldn’t have noticed, having hidden it well enough, but V had been surprised by her comment. Hammer right on the nail, dead center.

A thought crossed her mind and she slipped her hand into the left pocket of her pants to pull out a smoke case that belonged to Evelyn Parker. Judy had given it to her with the hopes Evelyn was just in thick of things within Clouds. In all the chaos on finding her as soon as possible, V had forgotten to give it back.

Judy let out a breath. “Um, bum a cig?”

At the sound of Judy’s raspy voice snapped V out of it to see her glancing over her shoulder, looking at her, or maybe the smoke case in her hands.

“Sure,” V stretched out her arm, handing Evelyn’s cigarette case to Judy once she was near. “Actually, you want the case back?”

Judy looked at the metallic case in her hands, turning it over and running her hand over the bejeweled heart shape design on the front. “No. Keep it. You seem to like it.”

Well, V only smoked just so Johnny would stop whining at her. Personally, she wasn’t much of a smoker, only did it a handful of times on occasion. Her health was a see-saw mess as it is right now. V was about to ask if Judy was sure about letting her keep it, but the BD tech’s feelings about Evelyn were pretty raw at the moment. Maybe she didn’t want any lingering keepsakes. It’ll bear too much memories, a painful reminder.

“Well, offer stands, if you change your mind,” V said instead.

Judy took in a long draught of smoke, before huffing it back out in a thick trail. The scent wasn’t the usual musky scent V had grown to distaste, but something…fruity?

“Fuck, Evie…” Judy groaned softly, as she took a seat on the chair beside her’s, with her elbows propped on her knees. “I let her down, V. Thought she just needed some space and time, she’d eventually get back on her feet.”

“Judy, you didn’t,” V reassured, leaning forward to prop her elbows on her knees, as well. “You did _everything_ you could.”

“I still left her to stew,” Judy spat back. “By herself, in whatever messed up thoughts that was probably crawling in her head.”

The damages Evelyn wasn’t just mental, but neural _and_ physical as far as she could tell. She didn’t know how long Evelyn was in that cesspool with the Scavs, but long enough to have messed her up royally. Then again, any hostility with the Scavs would screw anyone over. V had wished Judy hadn’t seen the pieces of cyberware and bodies the Scavs had hoarded up. Had they been too late, well, Judy would’ve wanted the whole place blown up and the Scavs scattered in pieces.

“’Member Fingers? How he said Evie was with him for four days?” Judy asked, letting out another huff of smoke.

“Uh huh, did say so,” V rubbed at the knuckles of her right hand unconsciously.

Oh, she _remembered_ Fingers, alright. Fucker tried to play it cool and confident, as if he controlled the interrogation. Once Judy had stormed out of his office, V hauled his ass from the chair, dragged him into the bathroom, and gave him a knuckle sandwich that oughta stuff his dirty mouth for a while. Judy was no softie, but she didn’t need to see the beating she gave the hack of a ripper doc for his time. She had given the Joy Toys who had been waiting for their turn at the doc’s enough eddies to cover their expenses for their doc visit. Even recommended a couple other ripper docs of her own: Vik, being the first, if they didn’t mind someone who took some care about their implants, and the one under Wakako’s payroll.

“She disappeared from Clouds a week before you turned up. Tom told me later,” Judy said. “Couldn’t sleep at night, knowin’ that…”

“Three days then,” V murmured, softly. She recalled all the evidence she found during her prowl on Clouds. “Dug through enough in Clouds to know she was kept there for a while. Didn’t know up til’ now just how long.”

“Mhm, kept thinking what the hell happened in those three days, so…” Judy combed a hand through her colorful, dyed hair. “I did some more digging in her virtus and _ehh_ …found Woodman.”

 _Ah_ , V thought, leaning back into her chair. Another corpse in her closet.

The place had pissed her off from the get-go, especially after the things the doll, Skye, had spewed out of her mouth. Sure, it confirmed some truths she would have to come to terms with, but she didn’t need some random AI digging into her psyche about it. Bad enough she had a rockstar legend and known terrorist living in her brain. Johnny had up in her ass how “diplomatic” she was about the whole thing, but she had spent about a week in her apartment in self-pity. Now, V gripped onto the rage of getting to the bottom of the mess the heist was.

Unfortunately for Woodman and Fingers, they were in her way.

“He kept her,” Judy continued on. “Had his way with her. The things he did…”

“Hm. Well, be happy, I guess,” V said, crossing her arms over her chest. Judy glanced at her. “I zeroed Woodman—not that I planned it. Just found ‘nough evidence linking him to Evelyn. Didn’t hide his holo trails. Kinda glad I didn’t hesitate on the trigger for him.”

Judy let out a soft scoff, flicking her finished stick as she set her back against the chair. “Me too. He pawned her off once he had his way with her, like some used up sex toy.”

They sat there, in a moment of relative silence. Well, as silent as one could get in Night City’s bustling life. As gorgeous as the sight is, V couldn’t keep her eyes away from Judy. A rollercoaster of emotions Judy must be feeling right about now, but she needed to vent. V understood the notion, though Judy looked like she was scheming something big with the way her leg was bouncing. Nerves, maybe, or she was reading too much into it. In her line of work, she’d gotten familiar with some signs, little ticks that something was up with someone.

With Judy, she saw a vengeful woman planning her war path.

Judy’s leg was bouncing more fervently, as she looked toward the city. “Still, it’s not enough, V. There’re so many more like him.”

 _You’d bomb the entire Joy Toy and doll biz all together if it meant getting back at the bastards for Evelyn,_ V thought. _But the price’ll be too high._

“Gotta be somethin’ I can do about it.”

And there it was, those words, the intent. Judy was seeking a mission to get back at Clouds, the system of using men and women like meat sleeves for someone’s desires, wicked or no. It’s what Evelyn started in, left, and found herself back in again.

“Like what?” V found herself asking, even though she already had inkling as to what Judy could be thinking about plotting and doing.

 _Punchin’ Judy_ is a Mox, after all.

“Don’t know yet, but I think I’ll call Suze,” Judy said, turning back to her. “Thanks, V. And uh—sorry, I’d rather be alone now. Promise to keep in touch.”

V nodded. “Sure you don’t need anything?”

Judy scratched her cheek lightly, her gaze going back toward the city once more. “No, but sweet of you to ask.”

That was her cue to up and leave, even though every instinct in her body told her to stop whatever Judy was thinking of scheming. Grief is a terrible thing to be blindsided by, can make someone do and go through things they’d never do. However, as her mother once told her: _‘Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.’_ An old saying back in the ages and one her mother lived by.

V stood up from the chair. “If anything comes up, holler on the holo.”

She left the apartment roof, but not before taking one last glance at the BD techy over her shoulder.

One way or another, they’ll be going into the Tyger Claws’ den to settle a score. V could only hope she’d pull Judy out of it.

**Author's Note:**

> If you've made it to the end, thank you, again for reading.  
> Stay safe out there, dear readers!


End file.
